Wheeled closure for tank type vacuum cleaner or the like



W. N. KEMNITZ WHEELED CLOSURE FOR TANK TYPE VACUUM CLEANER OR THE LIKE Nov. 24, 195-9 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 31, 1955 m w n A W H Nov, 24, .1959 w. N. KEMNITZ 2,914,333

' WHEELED CLOSURE FOR TANK TYPE VACUUM CLEANER OR THE'LIKE Filed Oct. 31, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Int/e272; 02". Warren N Kemm'tz,

H/Ls Att r-ngy,

1959. w. N. KEMNITZ 2,914,333

WHEELED CLOSURE FOR TANK TYPE VACUUM 4 CLEANER QR THELIKE Filed Oct. 31, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 H/s At orngg United States Patent WHEELED CLOSURE FOR TANK TYPE VACUUM CLEANER OR THE LIKE Application October 31, 1955, Serial No. 543,710 7 Claims, (Cl: 2's0-'-s This invention relates to couplings and particularly to those for efiecting a detachable connection between a closure and a casing. My invention is particularly well suited for use in a mobile vacuum cleaner and, therefore, for simplicity and clarity will be described as being incorporated in such a device.

In many contemporary devices it is desirable that one part be detachably connected to another part. The coupling art has expended much effort and energy to improve these connections and, therefore, is a highly developed art. It is normally desirable that such connections be readily made and broken, and there is often the further requirement that the connection, for example, when part of a closure, be locked and sealed tightly when made. These qualities are particularly desirable in devices, such as vacuum cleaners, where it is necessary to have easy access to the interior of a casing, and where it is concurrently necessarythat the casing be sealed tightly when closed. In a-vacuum cleaner application, easy access is primarily for the purpose of permitting dirt collecting receptacles which are normally housed in the cleaner casing to be changed, and a tight seal is necessary to avoid loss of vacuum due to air leakage. The vacuum cleaner art and other arts have produced numerous closure coupling arrangements, however, these arts constantly strive for improvements. i

The particular problems encountered in providing effective closure couplings sometimes depend upon the particular application of the closure. This is true, for example, in the vacuum cleaner art, which recently has stressed mobility in vacuum cleaners. Mobility immediately suggests a wheeled cleaner, and this gives rise to unique problems in providing an effective closure coupling. A particular, improved, wheeled vacuum cleaner in which it is desirable to provide an effective closure coupling is disclosed and claimed in the copending patent application, Serial No. 427,998, now Patent No. 2,811,737, of Franklin P. Hayba, filed May 6, 1954, and assigned to the assignee of the instant application. This type of vacuum cleaner generally comprises a cylindrical casing which is disposed on a horizontal axis and is supported on a pair of large wheels, one at each end of the casing.

An object of this invention is to provide an improved closure coupling generally, and particularly one which is well. suited for use in a Wheeled vacuum cleaner.

. Another object of this invention is to'provide an improved, detachable wheel. and lid assembly for a wheeled vacuum cleaner.

Some objects of my invention are achieved in one form by providing a closure which is adapted to be detachably connected to a casing, and which includes coucasing and a detachable, wheel and lid assembly which includes coupling structure for readily and quickly effecting -a tight connection between the assembly and the casing.

Other objects and further details of that which .I believe to be novel and my invention will be clear from the following description and claims taken with the accompanying drawings wherein:

Fig. l is a front elevational view of a closure assembly including my improved coupling, with portions broken away and shown in section for the purpose of clarity.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken substantially on' line 2-2 of Fig. 1. h

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a wheeled vacuum cleaner to which the improved wheel and lid assembly may be detachably connected.

pling structure operating on a toggling principle for readily and quickly effecting a tightconnection between the closure and the casing, 7

Other objects of my invention are achieved inanother form by providing, a wheeled vacuum cleaner having a Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the improved wheel and lid assembly.

Figs. 5, 6 and 7 are schematic views showing the parts of the wheel and lid assembly coupling structure in three difierent, relativepo'sitions.

Fig. 8 is an exploded view of the hub ofthe wheel and lid assembly. i

Referring to the drawings, the'wheel and lid assem: bly is generally designated by reference numeral 10 and generally comprises the lid 12, the hub 14 and the wheel 16. The lid and hubare rigidly connected and rotatably support the wheel. The entire assembly It) is adapted to 'be detachably connected to the vacuum cleaner casing 18, which is hollow and generally cylindrical as can best be seen in Fig. 3.

Vacuum cleaner casing 18 has a wheel 20rotatably mounted at one of its ends and supports internally aconventional motor and fan unit (not shown) which is surrounded by a cylindrical, aperture guard 22 which is spaced concentrically within the casing =18 and which supports at its axially free end a deeply dished cover 24. Cover 24, which is secured to guard 22 by securing means 25, houses a receptacle 26 for receiving a plug from a conventional detachable cord set (not shown), and the switch 28, which controls the flow of current to the motor. Appropriate wiring connects the re'ceptacle and switch to the motor. I

The annular cavity between the guard 22 and the casing 18 constitutes a filtering chamber into which detachable disposable dirt bags may be inserted. An apppropriate air inlet 30 is formed on the casing 18 and is adapted to'det'ach'ably receive a flexible. vacuum cleaner hose (not shown) in a conventional manner. The mentioned disposable dirt collecting bags may be coupled within the casing so as to communicate with the inlet 3t) and thereby receive dirt-laden air when the fan and motor unit is actuated. The normal flow of air is through a conventional vacuum cleaning tool (not shown), the flexible hose (not shown) which is connected to the in-,

let 30, the inlet 30, the disposable dirt bag (not shown), the apertures in the guard 22, the fan unit and out appropriate exhaust openings (not shown) in the casing 18. None of the details of the vacuum cleaner not il lustrated form any specific part of my invention, for my invention, as it regards vacuum cleaners, deals with the problem of detachably connecting a wheel and lid assembly to the open end of the casing 18.

' The coupling means for eifectuating the'connectionbetween the wheel and lid assembly and the casing comprises structure incorporated into the hub of the Wheel and lid assembly and structuredisposed on the cover 24', The latter structure comprises a pair ofprojecting- 32 which extend .radially out from the parallel lands 31 of the generally cylindrical wall portion 34,of the cover 24. If desired, the projecting pins,32 may be the ex-,

. 3 tremities of a single roll pin 33 which extends through appropriate openings in the lands.

The hub of the wheel and lid assembly incorporates the major portion of thecoupling structure. Referring to F1gs. ;2 and 8 particularly, it will be seen that the hub comprises an annular hub member 36 having an arcuate portion 37 cut out at one side, annular bearing retaining disk 38, and unitary guiding and bearing member 40, all of which are rigidly secured to the lid 12 by securing means such as screws 42 (see Fig, 2), U-shaped cam lever 46 and the arcuate hub handle 44 which is disposed in the cut out portion 37 and is adapted to complement annular hub member 36 to form a substantially uniform annulus. Hub handle 44 is secured to the U-sh-aped cam lever 46 by securing means, such as lever tabs 47 and screws 48, and the cam lever is pivoted 'to-the guiding and bearing member 40 by a pair of aligned rivets 50.

In Figs. 1 and 2 it will be observed that the bearing retaining member 38 is annular and has an offset portion 52 which cooperates with the fiat, annular bearing portion 54 of the guiding and bearing member 40 to define an annular channel 56 for receiving the bearing portion 58 of the wheel 16. The wheel 16 is rotatable within the channel 56 about the hub, and further includes a rim portion 60 for engaging a surface on which the entire device rests.

The guiding and bearing member 40, in addition to having a flat, annular bearing portion 54, includes an axially extending, generally tubular portion 62 having a pair of flat, projecting, parallel portions 64. Each projecting portion 64 has a slot 66 formed in it which constitutes a guiding means. Slot 66 includes a narrow portion 68, and a wide portion 70 which extends partially into the flat, annular portion 54 of the guiding and bearing member near where the portion 54 and portion 62 merge.

The U-shaped cam lever 46 is connected to the hub handle 44 at the base 71 of its U by the referred-to securing means 47 and 48. The U-shaped cam lever 46 has a pair of fiat, parallel legs 72 extending from the base 71, each of which includes a hook-like projection 74 having a cam surface 76 formed on one edge. As can best be seen in Fig. 1 the cam lever 46 is pivoted to the guiding and bearing member 40 by the n'vets 50 which pass through projecting portions 64 and the legs 72. Legs 72 are adjacent and parallel to, and disposed on the radially outer sides of the projecting portions 64.

It will be observed that in the foregoing arrangement, the U-shaped cam lever 46, is pivotal relative to the guiding and bearing member 40 about an axis passing through the rivets 50. During all relative movement of these parts, the hook-like projections 74 of the cam lever are free to swing within the portions 70 formed in the fiat hearing member during coupling or uncoupling of the assembly to the casing, and will be more specifically referred to subsequently when the mode of operation of the device is set forth.

.Figs. 1 and 2 show the assembly coupled to the vacuum cleaner casing. In this position, it will be observed that the hub handle 44 is disposed within the cut out portion 37 of the hub member 36, and complements it to thereby provide a substantially continuous annular hub 14. Further, the projecting pins 32 are surrounded by thecooperating hook-like projections 74 and the narrow portions 68 of the slots 66 in the projecting portions 64 of the guiding and bearing member.

Thisflis a lock d r latched condition. When in this condition, an annular gasket 80, which is secured to the peripheral edge of the lid 12, presses against the free edge 82 of the casing 18, and an annular gasket 84, which is secured centrally of the lid 12, presses against the guard 22. The gaskets effectively seal the assembly 10 to the casing 18. The casing 18 may be supported for movement over a surface by wheels 16 and 20 in the manner described in the referred-to Hayba application.

The detailed manner of coupling and uncoupling the wheel and lid assembly to the vacuum cleaner casing will presently be explained. In order to effect coupling at the outset, the wheel and lid assembly 10 is juxtaposed to the casing 18 and the handle 44 is moved to its outermost position to dispose the hub coupling structure as it is shown schematically in Fig. 5. There it will be observed that the hook-like projections 74 of the cam lever are disposed was to permit entry of; the pins 32 into the narrow portions 68 of the guiding and bearing member's slots 66. The hub 14 is oriented angularly relative to the cover 24 so as to align the flatprojecting portions 64 of the guiding and bearing member 40 with the lands 31 on the cover 24.

The assembly 10 is then forced axially toward the easing 18, and the hub coupling structure is slipped onto the projecting pins 32. During this movement, the gaskets and 84 on the lid 12 are brought into close proximity with casing edge 82 and the guard 22, respectively. After the pins 32 have entered the narrow portions 68, the handle 44 is forced toward the assembly. This causes the cam lever 46 to pivot (clockwise in Figs. 5-7) about the axis of rivets 50, which causesthe hook-like projections 74 to swing about the pins 32 until the cam surfaces 76 contact said pins (see Fig. 6).

The relationship of the axis of rivets- 50, the axis of the projecting pins 32 and the configuration of the portions of cam surfaces 76 which contact the pins 32 is significant at this time, and as it changes thereafter upon further movement of the projections 74. During the first portion of further movement of projections 74, due to the referred-to relationship obtaining at that time, the force caused by forcing handle 44 toward the assembly reacts at a portion on each cam surface 76 of such curvature that the line of said force falls on one side of the axis of rivets 50 (the left-hand side in Figs. 5-7) and tends to pivot the cam lever 46 counter-clockwise to uncouple the parts; this is substantially the Fig. 6 condition. Application of additional force on hub handle 44 overcomes this uncoupling force, and further movement of projections 74 alters the relationship to a dead center condition, i.e., a condition wherein the line of force reacting on the cam surfaces passes through the axis of rivets 50, and there is no tendency to pivot the cam lever 46 at all. Upon slight further movement of the handle 44 toward the assembly, the referred-to relationship becomes altered until the line of force reacting on the cam surfaces 76 shifts over the axis of rivets 50 (to the right-hand side thereof as viewed in Figs. 5-7), and the cam lever 46 is thereby urged to pivot clockwise. This snapping over dead center or toggling etfect forces the entire wheel and lid assembly 10 axially closer to the casing 18, thereby rigidly connecting the assembly to the casing with the gaskets 80 and 84 compressed. When the hub handle 44 is flush against the hub member 36, as illustrated in Figs. 1, 2 and 7, the coupling is effected and the wheel and lid assembly 10 is detachably locked to the casing 18 in the sealed condition.

To-remove the assembly 10 oflf of the casing 18, the reverse procedure is followed, namely, the hub handle 44 is pulled away from the assembly (moved counterclockwise in Figs. 5-7), thereby causing the cam lever 46 to move in a reversed manner to that of coupling. When the cam lever has moved from the position shown in Fig. 7 through'its position shown in Fig. 6, to its position shown in Fig. 5, the entire assembly 10 is readily slipped off of the cover 24 and moved axially away from the casing 18.

It should be realized that notwithstanding the fact that the invention has been described as being incorporated in a vacuum cleaner, there are many and varied other applications for the invention. Additionally, some aspects of the invention will have wider application than the manner in which it has been disclosed as being incorporated in a wheel and lid assembly, in that my invention contemplates a broadly novel coupling which in and of itself has wide application.

Therefore, and as will be evident from the foregoing disclosure, certain aspects of my invention are not limited to the particular details of construction of the example illustrated, and I contemplate that various and other modifications and applications will occur to those skilled in the art. It is, therefore, my intention that the appended claims will cover such modifications and applications as do not depart from the true spirit of my invention.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is: I

1. For use with a wheeled device comprising a casing having a wheel rotatably mounted at one of its ends, a centrally located, axially extending, cylindrical portion with radially projecting means, and cylindrical wall portions outwardly spaced from and coaxial with said cylindrical portion, a wheel and lid assembly comprising a lid having a hub, and a wheel rotatably supported on the hub, said hub having means for rotatably supporting the last mentioned wheel and means for coupling said assembly to said casing, said coupling means comprising means for guiding said hub on said cylindrical portion and cam means which is pivotally mounted to said guiding means, said guiding means being adapted to guide and align said cam means relative to said projecting means, whereby said cam means is adapted to engage said projecting means to draw the assembly into coupled relation with said casing, whereby said lid and hub are held rigidly against said casing with said lid contacting and in sealed relation with said cylindrical wall portions, and means accessible from the exterior of said device and said assembly for selectively actuating said cam means to either couple or uncouple said assembly and said device.

2. A device as defined in claim 1 wherein said cam actuating means comprises a portion of said hub which is pivotally mounted relative to the remainder of said hub.

3. A device as defined in claim 2 wherein the axis of pivoting of said pivotally mounted portion lies normal to the axis of said hub.

4. A device as defined in claim 1 wherein said cam actuating means comprises an arcuate portion of said hub which is pivotally mounted relative to the remainder of said hub.

5. A wheel and lid assembly comprising a lid having a hub, said hub having a bearing portion, a wheel rotatably supported on said bearing portion, said hub and lid adapted to be rigidly coupled to a support, said hub having coupling means for cooperation with said support to effect such coupling comprising a portion for guiding said assembly relative to said support and cam means which is pivotally secured to said guiding portion, said hub having a hub portion which is secured to said cam means and thereby pivotally secured to the remainder of said hub, said pivoted hub portion being located on the exterior of said assembly and support and being selectively manually operable to either couple or uncouple said assembly and said support.

6. A wheel and lid assembly comprising a lid, a hub, and a wheel, said hub being rigidly attached to said lid and having a unitary guiding and bearing member, a bearing retaining member and a cam lever, said guiding and bearing member having a guiding portion for guiding said assembly onto a support and a bearing portion, said bearing portion cooperating with said bearing retaining member to define a bearing channel for rotatably supporting said wheel, said cam lever being pivotally secured to said guiding and bearing member and accessible from the ex terior of said assembly, whereby said guiding portion may be utilized to position said assembly relative to the support and said cam lever may cooperate with said support to couple and uncouple the assembly and the support.

7. A detachable coupling for a first member having a cylindrical portion and a second member having a cylindrical opening adapted to receive said cylindrical portion when said members are coupled, comprising a central, axially extending portion on one of said members, said extending portion being coaxial with and spaced radially inwardly of said cylindrical opening and said cylindrical portion when said members are coupled, radially projecting means on said extending portion, said other member having a central hub portion that is spaced radially inwardly of said cylindrical opening and said cylindrical portion when said members are coupled, hook-like projections pivotally mounted on said hub portion and having a cam means formed thereon, both said radially projecting means and said hook-like projections being spaced radially inwardly of said cylindrical opening and said cylindrical portion when said members are coupled, and means for manually pivoting said hook-like projections whereby said hook-like projections when aligned with said radially projecting means and manually actuated cause said cam means to engage said projecting means and draw the members together into coupled relationship.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,726,240 Schmidt et al. Aug. 27, 1929 1,755,015 Muller Apr. 15, 1930 1,856,133 McClatchie May 3, 1932 2,336,129 Sargisson et al Dec. 7, 1943 FOREIGN PATENTS 178,299 Austria Apr. 26, 1954 616,857 Germany Aug. 7, 1935 

